Gates Foundation To Invest Up To $140M In Implantable HIV Prevention Device Research

Jan 04, 2017

Quartz: Bill and Melinda Gates are now backing a tiny implantable drug pump designed to prevent HIV infection
“…A daily dose of PrEP can reduce the risk of contracting HIV from sex by more than 90 percent. Getting patients to take the drug daily, a problem with most chronic diseases, is critical for preventing HIV effectively. Hoping to address this issue, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is investing $140 million to help Intarcia Therapeutics, a Boston-based biopharmaceutical company, develop a tiny implantable drug pump…” (Bagri, 12/31).

Wall Street Journal: Gates Foundation to Invest Up to $140 Million in HIV Prevention Device
“…The matchstick-size pump … can hold six or 12 months’ supply of medicine and is designed to deliver microdoses continuously to patients, ensuring they stay on the treatment. The new investment, which Intarcia announced [December 29], comes amid a flurry of fresh efforts to develop HIV prevention strategies…” (Winslow, 12/29).